WIREDGOV

Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead visited Tesco on Saturday to celebrate the latest local line in store - the multi award winning Salar smoked salmon.

Produced in a small smokehouse in South Uist, Salar Flaky Smoked Salmon received a pre Christmas boost by becoming the latest local Scottish producer to launch in Tesco stores across Scotland.

Salar Flaky Smoked Salmon is made with Scottish salmon from Loch Duart which are RSPCA Freedom Foods approved. The salmon is smoked using a unique process resulting in a distinctive flavour and texture which has won the company numerous awards over the years.

Mr Lochhead welcomed the news:

"Farmed Scottish salmon is a high quality product attracting strong demand from consumers all over the world. I'm pleased to see major retailers such as Tesco are helping to ensure that Scottish Salmon is reaching a wide audience this Christmas and delivering a boost to the Western Isles economy.

"Sampling delicious Scottish produce such as this fantastic smoked salmon is definitely one of the more enjoyable aspects of my job!

"I know from personal experience the quality of the natural environment in which these fish grow. It's very encouraging to see Salar building on its recent success at the Scotland Food & Drink Excellence Awards."

Angus Bell, Local Buying Manager for Tesco in Scotland says:

"We are continually impressed with the variety of food and drink being produced in Scotland. Salar Flaky Smoked Salmon was awarded the 'Product of the Year' at this year's Scotland Food & Drink Excellence Awards and is a great ambassador for the industry. We are delighted to be adding this product to our range of locally sourced food and drink."

Lesley Robertson, General Sales Manager for Salar Smokehouse says:

"We are delighted to have such an opportunity. We hope to work closely with Tesco to achieve high sales growth and demonstrate that the best quality foods from Scotland can outperform foods from anywhere else!"

Salar already has a fan base including celebrity chefs Rick Stein, Clarissa Dickson-Wright and Nick Nairn and are sure to pick up a few more over this festive season.

Salar Smokehouse will be offering customers the opportunity to taste their unique Flaky Smoked Salmon for themselves with in store demonstrations taking place in selected stores this weekend.**

SALAR will sell in Tesco stores for £2.40 per 100g. Tesco sells over £2billion of Scottish products across the UK. Tesco's Scottish Office has a dedicated buying, marketing and technical team for Scotland. Tesco currently have over 150 Scottish suppliers, providing over 1500 lines.

*Salar Flaky Smoked Salmon is now in 25 stores: